THURSDAY, JUNE 19, 2014
VOL. 92 | NO. 25 | $4.25
Grass tetany GROWING WITH FARMERS FOR 90 YEARS
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Syndrome strikes quickly, often with fatal results | P. 80
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Precip fallout See which areas across the Prairies are most affected by recent rains | P. 6
Top dressing big for 2014 Streaming, rather than spraying, prevents leaf burn | P. 74 Pro saddle bronc rider Layton Green of Meeting Creek, Alta., and Spenny the horse prepare to hit the ground during the Canadian Professional Rodeo Association sanctioned Wildwood Bronc Bustin’ event, held May 30-31 at Wildwood, Alta., 120 kilometres west of Edmonton. | AL POPIL PHOTO
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Spotlight falls on forgotten crop Rye has arrived | Crop is first successful hybrid cereal to be registered in Canada BY BARB GLEN LET BRIDGE BUREAU
Rye is a rock star in cereal circles. It’s the first hybrid cereal registered for commercial release in Canada, in a crop breeding world where much attention is being paid to hybrid wheat and other cereal development. Pe d i g re e d s e e d p ro d u c e r F P Genetics of Regina is the first to bring a hybrid cereal into its lineup. Brasetto rye was developed in Germany and approved for interim registration in Canada in February. “It is a big deal, for a number of reasons,” said Agriculture Canada cereals researcher Jamie Larsen. “People have been talking about hybrid cereals for a long time, hybrid wheat and barley and stuff, and rye is
really the first example of a hybrid cereal that is successful.” Ron Weik, seed portfolio manager for FP Genetics, said increased yield is a primary attribute of Brasetto. “It will get about a 25 percent higher yield or maybe better than the best current yielding open pollinated rye variety,” he said. The hybrid is also shorter, which means less straw to manage, and has uniform growth and maturity for ease of harvest management. Larsen said hybrid rye heads out in a shorter time frame, and its height is more uniform. Some varieties of open-pollinated r ye grow tall, increasing potential for shatter when swathed. “In comparing hybrids to open pollinated, there’s definitely some
advantages. Basically, it comes down to genetics. The hybrids are pure. It’s line A by line B. Genetically they’re quite pure, but the open pollinateds are much more variable.” Weik said an additional attribute is a higher falling number than existing rye varieties, which means the main target market will be milling and human consumption rather than feed. Rye was once a more popular crop in Canada. Farmers produced nearly one million tonnes in the early 1980s, but fewer than 400,000 tonnes have been produced annually in the last 10 years. Weik estimates that 200,000 to 250,000 acres of r ye are grown annually in Western Canada now, mostly north of Medicine Hat, Alta., north of Swift Current, Sask., and
parts of Manitoba. He attributes this to lack of interest in genetic improvement, at least until recently. Higher prices for other cereals also shifted focus away from the fall-seeded crop. However, rye prices have improved of late, trading at $4.75 to $5.25 per bushel f.o.b. the farmgate and are competitive with winter wheat. The crop’s other attributes have also renewed interest in rye breeding: in open pollinated varieties as well as hybrids. Larsen’s work on open pollinated rye is funded by the Saskatchewan Winter Cereals Development Commission, which he said seeks several improvements. SEE RYE HAS ARRIVED, PAGE 2
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JUNE 19, 2014 Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to: Box 2500, Stn. Main, Saskatoon, SK. S7K 2C4 The Western Producer is published in Saskatoon by Western Producer Publications, which is owned by GVIC Communications Corp. Publisher: Shaun Jessome Publications Mail Agreement No. 40069240
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